Tamara taps into UAE’s BNPL segment set to double in the next twelve months

10X Technology

Mita Srinivasan
10X Technology
Published:

Tamara taps into UAE’s BNPL segment set to double in the next twelve months

According to the MENA FinTech Association. non-cash payments have surpassed cash payments across all transactions, and expected to reach more than 70 percent of transactions by 2023. According to Checkout.com, 31 percent of residents are planning to use the technology in the coming 12 months. UAE was followed by Saudi Arabia at 27 percent, Kuwait at 26 percent and Bahrain at 18 percent. Qatar was in top place at 36 percent.

Saudi Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) platform, Tamara, is officially expanding to the UAE. It comes as new research by Checkout.com reveals that UAE consumers are among those most likely to use BNPL this year. Customers across the Emirates will now be able to split their payments interest-free at leading retailers like Namshi, SHEIN, Styli, Fitness Time, Faces and Swarovski, with hundreds more merchants anticipated to sign up in the coming months.

According to the MENA FinTech Association. the UAE is a leading market for financial technology in the MENA region. Non-cash payments have already surpassed cash payments across all transactions, and are expected to reach more than 70 percent of transactions by 2023.

Checkout.com’s survey concluded that 31 percent of residents are planning to use the technology in the coming 12 months, more than doubling the 21 percent in the country who have already used BNPL so far this year. The UAE was followed by Saudi Arabia at 27 percent, Kuwait at 26 percent and Bahrain at 18 percent. According to the research, which was conducted across the MENAP region, Qatar was in top place at 36 percent.

Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, CEO and co-founder of Tamara, commented: “Dubai is the natural second home for Tamara. The city is a global outpost for innovation, especially in financial technology, and has proven in the past few years its resilience and leadership in unpredictable economic conditions. Given the strong market potential and current growth rates, we anticipate signing up 1,000 merchants here by the end of the year.”

Remo Abbondandolo, SVP MENA at Checkout.com, which produced the research, added, “Tamara’s BNPL model offers Sharia-compliant finance to consumers, allowing them to receive a good or product before paying for it. As a result, Tamara is perfectly placed to serve the UAE market and support the growth of its thriving eCommerce landscape.”

Tamara was the first to acquire a sandbox license by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) in its category at the time. It now operates in both Saudi Arabia and the UAE and is available both online and in-store through Tamara’s customer app, offering payment solutions to more than 3,500 merchants across the GCC.